Steven Honigberg (born 17 May 1962) is an American

cellist The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C2, G2, D3 ...

. He is a member of the

National Symphony Orchestra The National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1930, its principal performing venue is the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. It also performs for the annual National Mem ...

and the Potomac String Quartet. From 1994-2002, Honigberg served as chamber music series director at the

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) is the United States' official memorial to the Holocaust. Adjacent to the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the USHMM provides for the documentation, study, and interpretation of Holocaust hi ...

, during which time the museum produced forty concerts and issued 4 CDs. From 1990-2009, he was principal cellist and chamber music director of the Edgar M. Bronfman series in Sun Valley, Idaho, where he was featured as soloist with the summer symphony in a variety of concerti. Hongiberg solos frequently; he is also known as a well-reviewed performer from

David Ott David Ott (born July 5, 1947) is an American composer of classical music. Born in Crystal Falls, Michigan, Ott's works include four symphonies, an opera (''The Widows Lantern''), the ''Annapolis Overture'', written for the Annapolis Symphony Orc ...

's premier of ''Concerto for Two Cellos''. A native of Chicago, Honigberg presented eight performances of Tchaikovsky's "Variations on a Rococo Theme" with the

Chicago Symphony Orchestra The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) was founded by Theodore Thomas in 1891. The ensemble makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival. The music director is Riccardo Muti, who began his tenure ...

as a 16-year-old winner of Chicago's Youth Competition. The summer before, while at Interlochen's Summer Music Camp, Honigberg, as a result of winning the 1978 Concerto Competition, performed with the World Youth Symphony as soloist in Bloch's "Schelomo", a performance that was recorded and released by the National Music Camp. Honigberg graduated from the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most el ...

with a Master's Degree in 1984. That same year, he soloed with the Juilliard Orchestra at Alice Tully Hall in Strauss' ''Don Quixote'', presented his New York Debut recital as a competition winner in Carnegie Recital Hall and was chosen by

Mstislav Rostropovich Mstislav Leopoldovich Rostropovich, (27 March 192727 April 2007) was a Russian cellist and conductor. He is considered by many to be the greatest cellist of the 20th century. In addition to his interpretations and technique, he was wel ...

to become a member of the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D.C. In February, 1988, Rostropovich led the National Symphony Orchestra in the world premiere of the ''Concerto for Two Cellos'', by David Ott; with David Teie and Honigberg, to whom the score is dedicated, as soloists. The ''Washington Post'' wrote "...the audience gave it a five-minute standing ovation." The ''Washington Times'' reported, "It was a case of love at first hearing. Mr. Rostropovich hugged and kissed the composer and his cellists as the packed house roared its approval." A champion of the work, Rostropovich subsequently programmed the "Concerto for Two Cellos" on the NSO's 1989 and 1994 U.S. tours. The cellists have played the work 30 times with numerous orchestras. Honigberg is a member of the Washington, D.C. based Potomac String Quartet, which released landmark projects - the complete string quartets of David Diamond (1915–2005; eleven quartets on four CDs) and Quincy Porter (1897–1966; nine quartets on two CD's). Honigberg also recorded ''Homage to Rostropovich'' (1927–2007), a CD of solo cello works written for the cellist; Frédéric Chopin's complete works for cello and piano; Ludwig van Beethoven's complete works for cello and piano; and his debut American works CD (Barber, Bernstein, Schuller, Foss, Diamond) rounds out his current discography. Honigberg is noted for explorations of new works, such as Lukas Foss' ''Anne Frank'' (1999), Benjamin Lees' ''Night Spectres'' (1999), Robert Stern's ''Hazkarah'' (1998), Robert Starer's ''Song of Solitude'' (1995), and David Diamond's ''Concert Piece'' (1993), all written for, premiered and recorded by the cellist. Honigberg is author of ''Leonard Rose: America's Golden Age and Its First Cellist'', published in 2010 and revised in 2013.

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